Broken McIntosh 2100 for 200 worth it?

[THD]

So I once got an MC2505 for $250 that had a busted face plate and a badly rusted chassis. Luckily the chassis was still solid and most of the worst rust was hidden (water was clearly flowing into the unit for years and the interior edges were terrifying. I felt like I needed a tetanus shot after cleaning it) but ultimately I got the rust clear and recapped the unit. After a new faceplate was installed it sounded like new and looked it as long as you kept it in the wood case. Even if its an ugly duckling since the MC2100 doesn't get a nice enclosure I'd say so as long as it can be picked up with the bottom cover off and it doesn't instantly bend in two you have something to potentially work with. Now if there is a fair chance one of the transformers is shot...that's when I'd walk away.

Like I said, never have I had to replace a transformer on any amplifier of any type I've repaired, and there have been a lot. If a transformer is fried then the owner must have really did some damage with some kind of miswiring or incompetence. That's my experience.

 

[BillWojo]

Look what neevo has done so far on his C20, I doubt the MC2100 is even in the same league as what neevo had to start with.
So prove me wrong, where are the pics?

BillWojo

 

[Pio1980]

Like I said, never have I had to replace a transformer on any amplifier of any type I've repaired, and there have been a lot. If a transformer is fried then the owner must have really did some damage with some kind of miswiring or incompetence. That's my experience.

We've had a few turn up here in some forum threads. How an autoformer gets fried is indeed a mystery, I can imagine flashover occasionally occuring in the voltage stressed multifilar wound unity coupled OPTs.

 

[savatage1973]

I agree that (in general) transformer failures are "rare", but they happen--lightning strikes (rare), sheer stupidity (more common) and trannies with the internal potted fuses (much more common), but pretty much any transformer can be re-wound or a new one replicated--it is just a matter of $$$--it's not like it is cutting-edge new tech, or totally obsolete tech that only two "gurus" in the world can repair/replicate.

Problem here is a seller that absolutely refuses to allow anyone perform a simple test before purchase indicates that they already know what the problem is AND what it will cost to repair.

 

[BillWojo]

Wasn't there an amp on Ebay that had a bullet hole in one of the transformers? Now that one your not fixing easy.

BillWojo

 

[Pio1980]

Wasn't there an amp on Ebay that had a bullet hole in one of the transformers? Now that one your not fixing easy.

BillWojo

Yes, an MC240.

 

[neevo]

Look what neevo has done so far on his C20, I doubt the MC2100 is even in the same league as what neevo had to start with.
So prove me wrong, where are the pics?

BillWojo

Hahaha. I was hovering and not saying anything until you brought my C20 up. That seller knew what he had but was 100% fair on the price... $200 too!

My thoughts were I’d rather have a junk $200 McIntosh than none at all. At least I could say I owned a Mac

Fixing it is a different story. But I’m a firm believer that anything is possible. All you need is unlimited time, skill, resources and money

I have time, resources and a little bit of skill and money. So happy to take on these ridiculous projects.

 

[excabincrew]

OP
Did you buy the broken amp??

 

[damacman]

OP
Did you buy the broken amp??

He likely lost interest in this ridiculous thread ...

 

[excabincrew]

Agreed

 

[SoCal Sam]

The amp I looked at was almost certainly more trouble than it was worth to fix. Every board inside look corroded.Corrosion on the entire chassis. It almost looked like it could have spend some time under water.
He had misspelled McIntosh in the ad, which may have been a shrewd attempt to make someone believe they had lucked into it before anybody else.

AK intel network...